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Run a shop · 1 min read

What affects a print price

A plain look at what goes into a screen printing price, so quotes make sense to the shop and the customer. No numbers here: every shop’s costs are different.

In short

  1. Screens = colors × locations. Each one is setup work.
  2. Setup is a fixed cost, so price per piece drops as quantity rises.
  3. Anything that slows the press (flashes, specialty ink, extra locations) adds cost.

01Screens and setup

Every color in every print location is its own screen. A two-color front and a one-color back is three screens, each one coated, exposed, registered, and cleaned afterward. That setup work is the same whether you print 12 shirts or 500.

Many shops cover it with a per-screen fee, a minimum order, or both.

02Quantity

Because setup is a fixed cost spread over the run, the price per piece drops as quantity rises. That’s why most shops quote in quantity breaks.

03Garments

Garments are a major cost, and premium garments, heavier fabrics and specialty blanks all change the number. Polyester and blends may also need different inks or blockers; see Inks.

04Press time

Production cost comes from how long the job takes on press, which depends on colors, flashes, garment type and crew. Manual and automatic presses run at very different speeds. See Presses & setup.

05Common adders

  • Extra print locations
  • Flash and underbase steps (each flash slows the press)
  • Specialty inks: high density, puff, glitter, metallic, discharge
  • Oversize prints
  • Multiple print sizes for different garment sizes
  • Rush deadlines
  • Individual names and numbers
  • Folding, bagging and other finishing

06Job flow

A typical job runs: quote → approval with a mockup → deposit → order blanks → art and separations → screens → press → cure and QC → fold and pack → invoice or pickup. Write everything on one job ticket so nothing is lost between steps.

Sources for this guide (3)
  1. Printavo, Screen printing pricing
  2. Printavo, How to make a screen printing pricing matrix
  3. ScreenPrinting.com, Sizing strategies for large shirt runs

Where sources disagree, the page says so.